News and Notes 5.7

May 7, 2010

Crew Communications

After earning a hard-fought draw in a tough environment at Seattle Sounders FC that kept it unbeaten last Saturday (May 1), the Crew readies itself for an Eastern Conference matchup as it welcomes the New England Revolution to Crew Stadium this Saturday (May 8). At 2-0-2, the Black & Gold is unbeaten through four games for the second time in club history (1-0-3 in 2007).

Saturday’s match, which kicks off at 7 p.m. ET, will be televised live nationally on Fox Soccer Channel. The game can also be heard in English on News/Talk 610 WTVN with Dwight Burgess and John Bluem behind the microphone and Neil Sika reporting from the sidelines, and on-line at TheCrew.com and MLSsoccer.com, as well as in Spanish on La Mega 103.1-FM, featuring Carlos Cordova and Benny Pietrangelo on the call.

New England, which currently sits tied for fourth place in the Eastern Conference with a 2-3-1 record (7 pts.), enters the match after earning a 1-1 draw at FC Dallas last Saturday (May 1), thanks to a tally by Zack Schilawski. It was an intense affair, as a total of 10 yellow card cautions were issue between the two teams and New England found itself down to only nine men following a pair of second-half red cards. Prior to traveling to Columbus for this Saturday’s match, New England will first host Chivas USA at Gillette Stadium this Wednesday (May 5) at 7:30 p.m. ET. The Revolution are led this season by rookie forward Schilawski, who leads the club with four goals, and Kheli Dube, whose three assists are tops on the team.

The Crew, which currently sits tied for second place in the Eastern Conference with a 2-0-2 record (8 pts.), enters Saturday’s match after earning a 1-1 draw at Seattle Sounders FC last Saturday (May 1) at Qwest Field. Seattle got off to a quick start with a score by Steve Zakuani in the match’s fourth minute. As the first half came to a close, the Crew’s Danny O'Rourke ran on to pass from Eddie Gaven down the left flank before sending in a precise cross into the Seattle penalty box, where Steven Lenhart snuck through the Seattle defense to head home the match equalizer for his first goal of the season.

Following each and every Crew home game this season, the club will host either Autograph Alley or an On-Field Postgame Kick. This Saturday’s fan event will feature a special Mother’s Day edition of the Postgame Kick, with all mothers and children welcome to come down to the field after the game for a shot on goal. Following Saturday’s match, those who wish to participate are invited top meet near Subway in the southwest corner of the stadium immediately after the game for the opportunity to kick on the south goal.

CREW TO CELEBRATE MOTHER’S DAY THIS SATURDAY, MAY 8In celebration of Mother’s Day weekend, the Crew is offering a number special offers and promotions to show your appreciation for that special woman in your life. The club is offering a Crew Mother’s Value Pack for Saturday’s game, which includes four tickets, four Sugardale hot dogs, four popcorns and four Pepsi products for as low as $20 per person. Crew fans can also enter their mom to be the Sunny95 Crew Soccer Mom of the Year online at www.sunny95.com, where they can submit a short story or letter telling why their mom deserves to be recognized as the “Crew Soccer Mom of the Year.” The Top 10 mothers (two to be selected each day) will receive the aforementioned Crew Mother’s Day Value Pack and will be recognized at halftime of this Saturday’s match. The Grand Prize-winning mother will also be announced at that time, and she will receive a special “Mother’s Day” prize pack from the Crew and a Party Suite for a future Crew game. In addition, the first 1,000 mothers through the gates this Saturday will receive a carnation.

LENHART SCORES HIS FIRST GOAL OF 2010; GAVEN, O’ROURKE PICK UP FIRST ASSISTS OF SEASONForward Steven Lenhart tallied his first goal of the 2010 season last Saturday (May 1) in the Crew’s 1-1 draw with Seattle Sounders FC, while Eddie Gaven and Danny O’Rourke each tallied their first assists of the season on the play. After Seattle’s tally in the fourth minute, Lenhart struck mere moments before the halftime whistle to snatch momentum away from the home side. As the first half came to a close, O'Rourke ran on to pass from Gaven down the left flank before sending in a precise cross into the Seattle penalty box, where Lenhart snuck through the Seattle defense to head home the match equalizer. Although Saturday’s goal was Lenhart’s first MLS goal of 2010, he previously tallied twice against Toluca FC on March 9 in a 2-2 draw at Crew Stadium in CONCACAF Champions League quarterfinal play.

CSA SPLITS WITH INTERNATIONALS ON SATURDAYThe Crew Soccer Academy took part in a rare one-match schedule last weekend as it hosted Internationals last Saturday (May 1) at the Crew Training Facility at Obetz. The day kicked off with the 15/16s falling to Internationals, 2-1, with its lone goal coming from Brett Elder. The 17/18 squad then faced their counterparts from Internationals and came away with 1-0 win, with the match’s sole tally coming from Kyle Culbertson. Both CSA squads will now travel to Cincinnati to face off against Ohio Elite next Saturday (May 8) at Xavier University, with the 15/16 squad playing at 2 p.m. and the 17/18 squad following at 4 p.m.

SPRING SOCCER FESTIVAL FOR CREW SOCCER NATION MEMBERS IS NEXT SUNDAY, MAY 16Spring Soccer Festival, one of the exclusive benefits of Crew Soccer Nation Gold, Black and Silver memberships, will be held next Sunday, May 16, at Crew Stadium from 1-3 p.m. CSN members will have the opportunity to interact with Crew players and coaches at a variety of stations on the field. Members are asked to bring their CSN credentials. Media is invited to cover the event.

CREWXTRA AIRS WEDNESDAY NIGHTS AT 8 AND 11 P.M. ON ONN-TVCrewXtra, the Crew’s weekly show, airs every Wednesday at 8 p.m. (and again at 11 p.m.) on ONN-TV. This week, host Beau Bishop will be joined by defender Eric Brunner, TV play-by-play man Dwight Burgess and Columbus Dispatch beat writer Shawn Mitchell. CrewXtra provides viewers with in-depth coverage and access to the team every week, including game recaps, breakdowns and previews of the upcoming matches, while interspersing other news, interviews, discussion and features.